Lemons aren’t something I have on hand at all times, which is why dehydrated lemon zest is a staple in my kitchen! Lemon peels dehydrate beautifully, and I love using the zest to add a hint of lemon to my favorite glaze recipe, cakes, and even homemade vinaigrettes!
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What Equipment Do I Need?
To dehydrate lemon zest, it’s helpful if you have a zester, a dehydrator, and silicone dehydrator sheets that fit in your dehydrator or parchment paper cut to size. If you don’t have a zester, you can use a food processor after dehydrating to break up the peels and turn them into zest!
Recipe Video
Instructions
Ingredients
Instructions
Using your zester, zest lemons.
If you don’t have a zester, the peels off of lemons and cut into small strips.
Using a silicone dehydrator sheet or a piece of parchment paper cut to size, cover a dehydrator tray.
Add the lemon zest to the covered dehydrator tray and spread the zest evenly.
Ensure no clumps of zest are sticking together.
Dehydrate at 135 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours.
Remove the tray from the dehydrator and check to see if the zest has dehydrated and ensure there are no clumps.
If the zest isn’t fully dehydrated, dehydrate at 135 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 more hours.
If the lemon zest is thoroughly dehydrated, store the zest in a covered, glass container in a cool, dark location for up to a year.
Fruit leather is a great way to ensure no fruit goes to waste, including fruit you have juiced with your steam juicer! You can customize flavors and even add protein powder, if you desire!
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Customizing Fruit Leather
The flavor possibilities are endless when it comes to fruit leather! I’ve included the ingredients I used to make peanut butter apple fruit leather and pineapple mango fruit leather, but use your creativity to come up with flavors you would like and enjoy!
The most important thing is to keep your mixture an applesauce consistency. You want it to be spreadable–not too runny and not too thick.
I also recommend investing in a steam juicer if you plan on doing much canning/jelly making. The reason I made fruit leather this week is because I had leftover plum pulp from making plum jelly! I wanted to use that pulp instead of throwing it away, and it worked perfectly in my peanut butter apple (plum) fruit leather!
Recipe Video
Fruit Leather Recipe
Peanut Butter and Apple Fruit Leather Ingredients
Pineapple Mango Fruit Leather Ingredients
Instructions
In a food processor, combine ingredients until smooth.
If you desire a smoother texture, use an immersion blender until desired texture is reached.
After 14 hours, check fruit leather. You should be able to easily peel it off of the silicone sheets and it should be sticky to the touch, but not wet. If it is still wet, dehydrate at 110 degrees Fahrenheit for two more hours or until dehydrated properly.
It’s June and, before preserving season is in full swing with produce coming in from the garden, it’s time to take care of any pumpkins and winter squash left over from last year’s harvest! The National Center for Home Food Preservation does not recommend canning pumpkin puree because of potential density issues, so how else can we preserve pumpkin? By dehydrating and freezing it!
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Dehydrating Pumpkin Puree
Dehydrating pumpkin puree is my favorite way to preserve it because I use it to make my Pumpkin Bars In a Jar and because it rehydrates just like canned puree! It’s also a great way to save your freezer space for other things.
Here’s a quick run-through of the dehydrating process! First, bake the pumpkin until cooked through. Then, puree the pumpkin with a blender or immersion blender and cook down until you reach your desired consistency. Then, spread on fruit leather sheets and dehydrate at 125 degrees Fahrenheit in a dehydrator for 10-12 hours. To tell if the pumpkin is properly dehydrated, bend a corner of the pumpkin sheet. If it breaks, it’s finished. If it does not break, continue dehydrating until it is completely dehydrated. Using a food processor, process the pumpkin until it is a powder or very small pieces. Store in a mason jar.
Freezing Pumpkin Puree
This is the fastest and easiest way to preserve pumpkin puree. All you need to freeze puree is an oven, an immersion blender (or regular blender or food processor), and a freezer!
I also recommend these stands that hold reusable or disposable freezer bags open so you can fill them more easily.
Rehydrating Pumpkin Puree
To rehydrate pumpkin puree, the water-to-pumpkin ratio is 4:1. So, if you want about one cup of pumpkin puree, you would combine 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree powder. You can add more water if you want a thinner consistency or less water if you want a thicker consistency.
Pureeing Pumpkin Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
While oven is preheating, cut pumpkin in half and scoop out seeds.
Cut pumpkin into pieces that will fit on your baking tray(s).
Put pumpkin onto trays with skin-side up and put trays into oven.
Bake for 45 minutes or until pumpkin is tender.
Remove from oven and let cool until it is cool enough to touch.
If there is any water in the baking trays, drain it off.
Remove skin from pumpkin. It should peel off, but, if it doesn’t, you can use a spoon or a knife to separate the skin from the pumpkin flesh.
Add baked and peeled pumpkin to a large bowl or stock pot.
Using an immersion blender, blender, or food processor, blend pumpkin until it is the consistency of pumpkin puree.
If you would like the pumpkin puree to be thicker, cook it over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches your desired consistency.
Dehydrating Pumpkin Puree Instructions
Fill fruit leather trays that fit your dehydrator with pumpkin puree.
Make sure the pumpkin puree is spread evenly on the trays.
Dehydrate at 125 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-12 hours.
After 10-12 hours, check the pumpkin puree for dryness.
If the dehydrated puree doesn’t snap when it is broken, put the trays back in and continue dehydrating at 125 degrees Fahrenheit for 2-hour periods until completely dehydrated.
Powdering Pumpkin Puree Instructions
Once the puree is completely dehydrated, break it into smaller pieces that will fit in your food processor.
Process until the puree turns into a powder or smaller pieces.
Store puree in a mason jar, turning every day for 5-7 days to ensure there are no clumps of pumpkin puree.
If your puree is clumping, it’s a sign that the pumpkin puree might not have dehydrated completely. Spread the puree pieces on a dehydrating tray and dehydrate again until completely dehydrated.
Rehydrating Pumpkin Puree Powder Instructions
In a 4:1 ratio, combine warm water and pumpkin puree powder. For example, if you want to rehydrate 1 cup of pumpkin puree, add 1 cup of water to 1/4 cup pumpkin puree powder.
Use as you would use pumpkin puree.
Freezing Pumpkin Puree Instructions
Label reusable or disposable freezer bags with the name of what you’re freezing and the date you’re freezing it.
Put the desired amount of pumpkin puree into reusable or disposable freezer bags.
Flatten out, ensuring as much air as possible is pushed out of the freezer bag.
When it comes storing food long-term, the best course of action is to store them in sealed Mylar bags! Dry goods that contain very little moisture can be successfully stored for up to 25-30 years or longer, including sugar, oats, white rice, dry beans, ground coffee, and wheat berries.
NOTE: If storing sugar, do NOT add an oxygen absorber. It will make the sugar extremely hard.
Long-Term Food Storage Materials
To store food long-term in Mylar bags, you need Mylar bags, oxygen absorbers, and an impulse sealer or another way to seal your Mylar bags. Some people report success using a hair straightener or a clothes iron.
When it comes to Mylar bags, you want quality! You can find cheap Mylar bags, but they are often thin or not durable enough to store food long-term. One of my favorite brands to purchase Mylar bags from is Wallaby. They often have discounts, bundle packs, and even free oxygen absorbers with purchase! I’m not sponsored by them nor do I receive anything in return for promoting the brand. I just love the products!
Help! My Mylar bag is full of air!
If you have a Mylar bag that you filled with dry goods, added an oxygen absorber, sealed, and it is still puffy, have no fear! This is completely normal!
Oxygen absorbers only absorb, you guessed, it, oxygen! And the air we breathe is only about 21% air. So your sealed Mylar bag may be completely free of oxygen but still contain air, and that’s okay. To prevent this, press as much air out as you can before sealing. Some people even go as far as to use a vacuum to suck out excess air!
Is it enough?
If you want to protect your food from pests, such as mice, it is a good idea to go the extra mile and store your sealed Mylar bags in food grade storage containers. Some people have reported mice chewing through even food grade containers, so, if you live in an area where mice are rampant, you may want to opt for a glass or metal option with a locking lid.
How many oxygen absorbers do I need to put in my Mylar bag?
The chart I use to help me determine how many oxygen absorbers are needed for any particular Mylar bag can be found at this link.
However, you can never add too many oxygen absorbers! It is always okay to err on the side of caution and add extra absorbers, as the recommendations on the list are intended for individuals at sea level altitude or lower.
How To Video
Instructions
First, ensure you have Mylar bags, oxygen absorbers, a way to seal your Mylar bag, labels, and the dry goods you’re going to fill your Mylar bags with.
Fill your Mylar bag or bags with your dry goods. It’s a good idea to fill all of the bags you’re going to use in this step, as you’ll need to work quickly once you open your oxygen absorbers.
Write your labels and label your Mylar bags. Make sure to complete this step before sealing!
Working quickly, add suggested amount of oxygen absorbers to your Mylar bag(s). If using sealable Mylar bags, press any excess air out before sealing.
Using your heat-sealing mechanism, seal each Mylar bag.
Gently pull the top apart to ensure a good seal and to check for any gaps indicating that the Mylar bag did not completely seal.
If there is no seal or if you see any gaps, use your heat-sealing mechanism to seal the bag until no gaps remain.
Store sealed Mylar bags in a glass, metal, or food-grade container.
